"and masters have distinctly different handshakes to identify one from another. Additionally, the Freemasons make use of the aforementioned secret signals to subtly indicate who is of what level. For instance, one handshake used between a master from an apprentice includes distinct touches on the knuckles. Handshakes are very common even today. The usage of secret handshakes in modern society is much more informal compared to the historical usage of secret handshakes. Where historically, a secret handshake would have a more formal, serious tone, today, secret handshakes are shared by mostly people in grade school who share a friendship type"
"Society is the first recorded collegiate secret Society in North America, but unlike Phi Beta Kappa, it was a Latin-letter society. Its name was taken from letters of a secret Latin motto with acronym F.H.C. William & Mary alumnus and third U.S. President Thomas Jefferson was perhaps the most famous member of the F.H.C.; other notable members of the original Society included Col. James Innes, St. George Tucker, and George Wythe. Jefferson noted that ""When I was a student of Wm. & Mary college of this state, there existed a society called the F.H.C. society, confined to the number of"
"first known secret collegiate society in the United States, the F.H.C. Society (founded in 1750). The initials of the society stand for a Latin phrase, likely ""Fraternitas, Humanitas, et Cognitio"" or ""Fraternitas Humanitas Cognitioque"" (two renderings of ""brotherhood, humaneness, and knowledge""), but it has long been publicly nicknamed the ""Flat Hat Club"". William & Mary alumnus and third American president, Thomas Jefferson, was perhaps the most famous member of the F.H.C. Society. Other notable members of the original society included Col. James Innes, St. George Tucker, and George Wythe. Jefferson noted that, ""When I was a student of Wm. &"
"secret societies, the Sigma Society and the Cadaver Society. Founded in 1880, the Sigma Society is one of Washington and Lee's ""oldest, continuous social organizations."" While membership information is not necessarily anonymous, the group's purpose and inner workings remain a secret. The group has long had a connection to President George Washington, though the extent of that relationship is unknown to the public at large. Similarly, the acronym P.A.M.O.L.A. R.Y.E. - which can seen inscribed on buildings and in classrooms throughout the Lexington area - also bears an unknown significance to the group. The group has largely gone underground since"
"Bishop James Madison Society The Bishop James Madison Society is a secret society of the College of William and Mary in Virginia. Students founded the society in the year 1812 as a tribute to the life of the late Bishop James Madison, eighth president of William and Mary and cousin to the U.S. president James Madison. Like other secret societies at the college, the Bishop James Madison Society fell victim to the hostilities of the American Civil War when William and Mary was occupied by Union troops and was forced to close its doors. In the twentieth century, William and"
"membership in the Princeton chapter of Delta Psi is public, the society is known to maintain a secret president, referred to as Number One, whose identity is known only to members for the duration of his or her office. The 21 Club, an all-male drinking society, is also a notorious Princeton secret society. Princeton also has a long tradition of underground societies. While secret society membership is relatively public at some schools, Princeton's historical secret society rolls are very secretive because of Woodrow Wilson's ban on clandestine organizations and his threat to expel secret fraternity members from Princeton. One such"
"of its most prominent members included St. George Tucker, Thomas Jefferson and George Wythe. The second oldest secret society recorded in North America is Phi Beta Kappa, founded in 1776 by students at the College of William and Mary inspired by the F.H.C Society. The Phi Beta Kappa society had a rudimentary initiation and maintained an uncertain level of secrecy. Those secrets were exposed in the mid-1830s by students at Harvard University acting under the patronage of John Quincy Adams. Since the 1840s, Phi Beta Kappa has operated openly as an academic honor society. The spread of Phi Beta Kappa"
"Societas Domi Pacificae Societas Domi Pacificae, colloquially known as The Pacifica House or SDP, is a secret society based at Brown University, in Providence, Rhode Island, and is the oldest student secret society in the United States. Organized in 1824 as The Franklin Society, it was created in a year when such a large class entered Brown University that the two existing literary debating societies, the Philermenian Society and the United Brothers Society could not accommodate the new students. Notable personages such as Thomas Jefferson, John Quincy Adams, and Henry Clay accepted honorary membership into the society during this time."
"secret society they were unaware existed. Many people within police forces and courts were simply bribed, while witness intimidation was also common. In 1951, a U.S. Senate committee called the Kefauver Hearings determined that a ""sinister criminal organization"" known as the Mafia operated in the nation. Many suspected mobsters were subpoenaed for questioning, but few testified and none gave any meaningful information. In 1957, New York State Police uncovered a meeting and arrested major figures from around the country in Apalachin, New York. The event (dubbed the ""Apalachin Meeting"") forced the FBI to recognize organized crime as a serious problem"
"Cosmos Club The Cosmos Club is a 501(c)(7) private social club in Washington, D.C. that was founded by John Wesley Powell in 1878 as a gentlemen's club. Among its stated goals is ""The advancement of its members in science, literature, and art"". Cosmos Club members have included three U.S. presidents, two U.S. vice presidents, a dozen Supreme Court justices, 36 Nobel Prize winners, 61 Pulitzer Prize winners, and 55 recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Since 1988, women guests have been allowed to enter using the front door and to be nominated as members. The club has approximately 3,089"
"as ""...the most difficult door to open in Washington D.C."". Indeed, the club was so exclusive that not even its members knew exactly who else belonged entirely. It was the place where men of power and influence dined, drank and socialized as they charted America's course according to Collier Magazine. It was managed by a Board of Directors consisting of ten members. They were the ""Old Guard,"" from prominent Washington, D.C. families who carefully guarded all operational aspects of the club. The club hosted members of the most prominent families in the United States, as well as senior officials from"
"of the twentieth century, all of which are forbidden to tell others about the secrets of their exclusive club. Throughout the years, the Skull and Bones club has included presidents, cabinet officers, Supreme Court justices, spies, captains of industry, and often their sons and daughters join the exclusive club, creating a social and political network like none ever seen before. The upper class individuals who receive elite educations typically have the essential background and contacts to enter into the three branches of the power elite: The political leadership, the military circle, and the corporate elite. Mills shows that the power"
"enroll their children in prestigious preschools and elementary schools leading to private middle schools and high schools, and finally elite, private colleges. Often graduating from schools such as those in the Ivy League, upper class members have traditionally joined exclusive clubs or fraternities. Students at Yale University created the Skull and Bones social club. The Skull and Bones was a secret society that had members such as George H. W. Bush and John Kerry. These members obtained valuable social capital by joining the club. Individuals of every religion in the world have become wealthy in America. However, the majority of"
"High school secret societies High school secret societies describes a type of secret society founded at, or featuring students associated with a particular high school, primarily in the United States. American universities have a long tradition of secret societies, initially started within East Coast colleges, and eventually trickling down into what became the secret societies found at America's oldest boarding schools. Between 1898 and 1908, high school secret societies were a recognizable feature within the school system, and Otto C. Schneider, President of the Chicago School Board of 1908, took an active role in stopping their influence within secondary schools."
"now the IMP Society, were very public, incurring the wrath of the administration for public reveals. The first truly ""secret society"" was the Seven Society, founded circa 1905. Two decades before, there had been a chapter of the Mystical 7 society at Virginia, which may have been an inspiration. Nothing is known about the Seven Society except for their philanthropy to the University; members are revealed at their death. A few other societies that flourished around the turn of the 20th century, such as the Z Society (formerly Zeta), who were founded in 1892, the IMP Society, reformulated in 1913"
"Kappa Beta Phi Kappa Beta Phi (ΚΒΦ) is a secret society, best known for its Wall Street Chapter that is made up of high-ranking financial executives. The purpose of the organization is largely social and honorific. The current honor society meets once a year at a black-tie dinner to induct new members. The current president is Alfred E. Smith IV. Kappa Beta Phi lore, as told to initiates of the 1950s, was that it was the second oldest campus or Greek-letter fraternity following Phi Beta Kappa, that it also was founded in 1776, that it was founded as an alternative"
"Secret societies at the College of William & Mary Secret societies at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, date back to the founding of the nation's first known collegiate secret society, The F. H. C. Society (founded on November 11, 1750). Today a number of secret societies are known (or believed) to exist at the College: the F.H.C Society or Flat Hat Club, the Seven Society, the 13 Club, the Ladies of Alpha, the Bishop James Madison Society, the Phi Society, the Wren Society, the W Society, the Y's, The Penny Brigade, The Order of the Silver"
"Sigma Society The Sigma Society is a secret society at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia. Founded in 1880, it is one of the older secret societies in the United States, and remains ""one of the oldest continuous social organizations at Washington and Lee."" The Sigma Society is roughly 70 years older than the Cadaver Society, and together these two organizations comprise the main two ""secret"" societies at Washington and Lee. In contrast with the strictly secretive membership of the Cadaver Society, the Sigma Society is not anonymous. The Sigma Society was founded at Washington and Lee in 1880"
"is not known whether the Sigma Society has used those funds to establish a new group location. As noted by Chief Justice William Rehnquist, Supreme Court Justice Lewis Powell, Jr. is one of the group's most prominent members. Sigma Society The Sigma Society is a secret society at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia. Founded in 1880, it is one of the older secret societies in the United States, and remains ""one of the oldest continuous social organizations at Washington and Lee."" The Sigma Society is roughly 70 years older than the Cadaver Society, and together these two organizations"
"Stanley F. Reed, Allen Dulles and John Foster Dulles, Speaker of the House Nicholas Longworth, and General George C. Marshall. Alibi Club The Alibi Club is a private, traditional gentlemen's club in Washington, D.C. Its members comprise the Washington elite, including presidents, senators, and diplomats, among other prominent figures. In 1884, seven Washingtonians founded the Alibi Club, a private social club consisting of prominent political and social figures. Its name derived from the club practice of providing an alibi when the whereabouts of a member was questioned by the member's family. The club's founding purpose was to foster ""mutual improvement,"
"Alibi Club The Alibi Club is a private, traditional gentlemen's club in Washington, D.C. Its members comprise the Washington elite, including presidents, senators, and diplomats, among other prominent figures. In 1884, seven Washingtonians founded the Alibi Club, a private social club consisting of prominent political and social figures. Its name derived from the club practice of providing an alibi when the whereabouts of a member was questioned by the member's family. The club's founding purpose was to foster ""mutual improvement, education, and enlightenment"" among members of Washington society. Membership also extended to out of town figures from New York City,"
"Seven Society (College of William & Mary) The Seven Society, Order of the Crown & Dagger (colloquially known as the Seven '7' Society or Sevens '7s') is the longest continually active secret society of the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. The clandestine, yet altruistic group is said to consist of seven senior individuals , selected in their junior year. While, historically, graduating members formally announced their identities each spring, today's membership is steeped in mystery and is only revealed upon a member's death. Now rumored to meet late at night in Colonial Williamsburg's Shields Tavern, present-day Sevens"
"Cadaver Society The Cadaver Society is a secret society of students at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, United States. The group's membership and organizational structure are unknown. Cadaver has been in continuous operation since its founding in 1957. The Cadavers have a bridge that bears their name, connecting the main campus to Wilson Field, as well as their symbol in many prominent places throughout the campus. In contrast with the non secretive membership of the Sigma Society, the Cadaver Society is strictly anonymous. Membership is speculated to consist of older students at the University. The criteria for membership"
"in science, literature, or the arts, or... recognized as distinguished in a learned profession or in public service"". Members come from a wide variety of background, but a common theme among members is ""a relation with scholarship, creative genius, or intellectual distinction"". Cosmos Club members have included three U.S. presidents, two U.S. vice presidents, a dozen Supreme Court justices, 36 Nobel Prize winners, 61 Pulitzer Prize winners, and 55 recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Cosmos Club The Cosmos Club is a 501(c)(7) private social club in Washington, D.C. that was founded by John Wesley Powell in 1878 as"
"Phi Beta Kappa, on December 5, 1776, as a secret literary and philosophical society. Additional chapters were established in 1780 and 1781 at Yale and Harvard. With nearly 300 chapters across the country and no longer secret, Phi Beta Kappa has grown to become the nation's premier academic honor society. Alumni John Marshall and Bushrod Washington were two of the earliest members of the society, elected in 1778 and 1780, respectively. Although the pressures of the American Civil War forced several societies to disappear, many were revived during the 20th century. Some of the secret societies known to currently exist"
"Collegiate secret societies in North America There are many collegiate secret societies in North America. They vary greatly in their levels of secrecy and independence from their universities. As the term is used in this article, a ""secret society"" is a collegiate society where significant effort is made to keep affairs, membership rolls, signs of recognition, initiation, or other aspects secret from the public. Some collegiate secret societies are referred to as 'class societies', which restrict membership to one class year. Most class societies are restricted to the senior class, and are therefore also called ""senior societies"" on many campuses."
"private members' club from the building, started by Laura M. Gross. The Club counted many well known and influential men as regular guests, including Presidents Harry Truman, John F. Kennedy, George H. W. Bush and members of their respective Administrations. This popularity could well have been because the Clubhouse was only a few blocks away from the White House. The Clubhouse also served as a popular meeting place of the East Coast elite (in particular those who held powerful positions in the C.I.A. and the Department of State); and who hold informal meetings at the club. It was once labelled"
"symbol, the 7 and crown, stitched on the sash which drapes across their body. Membership selection for this society, just like CHI, remains a secret. Princeps has no known ties to the University of Virginia's 7 Society. Secret societies are banned in all military academies in the United States. Norwich University was the last military academy to outlaw secret societies, doing so in 1998. The stated reason for doing so was controversy regarding hazing and abuse of cadets. Prior to the ban Norwich was home to a handful of long standing secret societies such as the Old Crow Society, Night"
"Red Dragon Society The Red Dragon Society is a secret society based at New York University, in New York, New York. The Red Dragon has long held the title to the most selective society at NYU, and has been known for its secrecy since its founding in 1898. The Red Dragon Society was founded in 1898 upon the transfer of NYU's undergraduate college from Washington Square to University Heights. The Society inducts only rising seniors from the College of Arts and Science prior to their graduation. The Red Dragon is NYU's fourth oldest and perhaps most well known senior society."
"at the College are: The 7 Society, 13 Club, Alpha Club, Bishop James Madison Society, Flat Hat Club, The Spades, W Society, and Wren Society. Cornell University has a rich history of secret societies on campus. Andrew Dickson White, the first President of Cornell University and himself a Bonesman, is said to have encouraged the formation of a ""secret society"" on campus. In the early years, the fraternities were called the ""secret societies,"" but as the Greek system developed into a larger, more public entity, ""secret society"" began to refer only to the class societies. In the early twentieth century,"
"secret society in the territory of the present United States of America, founded at the College in 1750. The first issue of ""The Flat Hat"" was printed on October 3, 1911. The name can be traced back to the F.H.C. Society, a secret fraternity established at the College on November 11, 1750, and nicknamed the Flat Hat Club, whose most notable members included St. George Tucker, Thomas Jefferson, and George Wythe. As a collegiate fraternity, the Flat Hat Club was a predecessor of Phi Beta Kappa, which was founded at the College in 1776 and today is regarded as the"
"notwithstanding the retention of the original name as set forth in the 1693 Royal Charter. The College of William and Mary has a rich tradition of secret societies and is home to the nation's first academic secret society, the Flat Hat Club. Although the pressures of the American Civil War forced many Societies to disappear, most of them were revived during the 20th Century. Some of the secret societies known to currently exist at the College are the Seven Society (Order of the Crown and Dagger), Wren Society, Bishop James Madison Society, Flat Hat Club, Alpha Club, The Society, 13"
"Dragon Society The Dragon Society or Society of Dragons is a secret society of senior men at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The group's membership and organizational structure are unknown, with notable exceptions. Dragon has been in continuous operation since its founding in 1898. Because it is a secret society, little verifiable information is available about its activities. Membership consists of a small number of senior men who are selected during their junior year in a school-wide selection process known as ""tapping."" Every winter and spring, juniors are tapped for the senior societies through a process semi-coordinated"